Griffith Rutherford - Early Life

Early Life

Little is known about Griffith Rutherford's early life. Born in Ireland in either 1721 or 1731 to John Rutherford, who was of Scots-Irish descent, and Elizabeth (née Griffin), who was of Welsh descent, he appears clearly in records after his immigration to Philadelphia at the age of eighteen. His parents died during the voyage from Ireland, and for a while he worked on a relative's farm, where he was taught how to survey land. Around 1753, he moved to Rowan County, North Carolina Colony, and bought a tract of land about seven miles (11 km) from Salisbury, the first of several land purchases he made during the 1750s. In the following year he married his neighbor's sister, Elizabeth Graham, who bore him ten children. One of their sons, James Rutherford, later became a major during the Revolutionary War, dying in the Battle of Eutaw Springs. Rutherford also became friends with Daniel Boone, with whom he often went on hunting and surveying expeditions. After the French and Indian War, Rutherford became increasingly active in the community. He is listed as a member of the North Carolina General Assembly in 1766, a sheriff and justice of the peace of Rowan County from 1767 to 1769, and a tax collector.